This is an editorial by our owner, Luke Bouma as he looks at the current state of Comcast in the world of Cord Cutting 2.0. This is his personal thoughts on the current state of Comcast’s TV and internet businesses and what they will look like going forward. This comes from his over 11 years of experience in covering Comcast and this industry as a whole.
Comcast Corporation, the global media and technology conglomerate, is grappling with a deepening crisis in its core Xfinity-branded cable TV and internet businesses, prompting speculation that the company may be forced to spin off these divisions to safeguard its more profitable studio and sports operations. The company’s Q1 2025 earnings report, released Thursday, paints a grim picture, revealing a loss of 427,000 cable TV subscribers and 199,000 broadband customers, underscoring the challenges facing its traditional connectivity services in an increasingly competitive market.
While Comcast’s core business today is still cable TV and cable internet over a year of losses in its internet business raises concerns. This years staggering subscriber losses come at a time when Comcast is already moving to divest itself of underperforming assets. In November 2024, the company announced plans to spin off a portfolio of cable TV networks, including MSNBC, CNBC, Syfy, USA Network, Oxygen, E!, and the Golf Channel, into a new publicly traded entity tentatively called “SpinCo.” This move, expected to be completed by the end of 2025, aims to offload assets generating approximately $7 billion in annual revenue but facing declining viewership due to cord-cutting and the shift to streaming platforms. Now, with Xfinity’s cable TV and broadband businesses bleeding subscribers, it is possible that Comcast may be forced to consider a similar strategy to protect its thriving studio and streaming divisions, including Universal Pictures, Peacock, and its theme parks.
The Q1 2025 report highlights the intense pressure on Comcast’s connectivity business, which has long been a cornerstone of its revenue. The loss of 427,000 cable TV subscribers reflects the ongoing trend of cord-cutting, as consumers increasingly favor streaming services like Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, and Comcast’s own Peacock. More concerning, however, is the loss of 199,000 broadband customers, a segment once seen as a reliable growth engine.
It is true that Comcast did earn more money from the internet, mostly by pushing customers to more expensive packages, much like with cord cutting 1.0. At some point, that could speed up cord-cutting 2.0, as Americans question if they really need these expensive internet packages.
The broadband losses are particularly alarming as competition from fixed wireless providers like Verizon and T-Mobile, as well as fiber overbuilders, has intensified. At the same time Comcast lost almost 200,000 T-Moble and Verizon added hundreds of thousands of new internet customers mostly to their 5G Home Internet services. The end of the federal Affordable Connectivity Program (ACP) in 2024 further exacerbated subscriber churn, though Comcast noted that, excluding ACP-related losses, it would have seen a modest net addition of 9,000 broadband customers in Q3 2024. However, the Q1 2025 figures suggest that these competitive pressures are accelerating, threatening Comcast’s dominance as the largest cable operator in the United States.
Now the question is whether Comcast can sustain its current structure amid these mounting losses. Or if they will be forced to spin off their Xfinity TV and internet services into a 3rd party company to protect Comcast’s core businesses.
Comcast’s studio business, part of its NBCUniversal division, has been a bright spot, with Q1 2025 revenue rising 3% to $2.83 billion, fueled by successes like Despicable Me 4 and Wicked. Peacock, the company’s streaming platform, also showed resilience, growing to 41 million paid subscribers and narrowing its quarterly loss to $215 million from $639 million a year earlier. These gains underscore Comcast’s strategic pivot toward content and experiences, areas less vulnerable to the competitive dynamics eroding its connectivity business.
A potential spin-off of Xfinity’s cable TV and internet operations would be a seismic shift for Comcast, which has relied on its connectivity platforms to reach 51.4 million customer relationships. However, the move could mirror the cable network spin-off, creating a leaner Comcast focused on high-margin businesses.
As Comcast navigates this turbulent landscape, the possibility of a broader restructuring looms large. The company’s ability to stabilize its broadband business while capitalizing on its studio and streaming momentum will be critical to its long-term success. For now, the specter of a Xfinity spin-off serves as a stark reminder of the challenges facing traditional cable operators once seen as a safe money maker in a rapidly evolving media and technology ecosystem.
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We updated our story with additional details on Comcast’s rising profits in internet and how that could impact cord cutting 2.0.